Maybe
by sQuIsHeDbRoCcOlLi
Summary: The Heavenly Guardian is not Hitsugaya Toushirou. We've got it wrong. All wrong. Soul Society is thrown into turmoil as their careful web of lies collapse.
1. Part I 'Prologue

**Disclaimer: **Bleach belongs to Kubo Tite.  
**Title:** Maybe  
**Genre:** Many. Angst, Family, Mystery, Suspense(?). a little Action...but I could only put 2 up  
**Rating:** T  
**Characters: **I can't tell you specifically, or I would ruin the story, wouldn't I?  
**Summary:** The Heavenly Guardian was a legend; a myth. Hundreds of years later after her death, the wielder of Hyourinmaru returns in the form of a child, and everyone thinks that the Heavenly Guardian has returned to them. The child, however, grew up shielded from the legend. When Aizen demands the Guardian from Soul Society, he reveals that Hitsugaya Toushirou is not the Heavenly Guardian. Who then holds the fate of Soul Society? Why does the boy have Hyourinmaru? Nobody knows, except Aizen Sousuke.

* * *

**PROLOGUE**

Three smooth, flat stones.

Three wilted flowers.

One drenched figure, hunched amid the destruction.

The sleeves of her yukata clung to her arms, and her cropped blond hair had long since pasted itself to the back of her neck. Murky rainwater pooled at her knees; but she couldn't care less.

Soul Society had made a mistake. The wrong people were spared. The wrong people were hurt.

The wrong people were dead.

Soul Society was supposed to win.

_Was everything we had built on false hopes?_

This wasn't how it was supposed to end.

_We need to turn back. _

_We need to go over everything again._

This wasn't how it was supposed to end.

_If we could, I would do everything different. _

_We wouldn't make the same mistakes._

_The ending would be different. _

_How was it supposed to end?_

_I don't know._

_Maybe it was supposed to end this way._

_Nobody knows. _

_I don't know, except that,_

This wasn't how it was supposed to end.

* * *

Dear Readers (if any):  
righto, so here's the prologue of the plot bunny that attacked me. First, I have a little confession: I don't normally write this kind of genre. So...you know what that means? Slower updates! And possibly a request for a beta, though I would rather write it myself. Also, I have no idea how many people are actually interested in my plot, so I'm posting up the prologue (which is the only thing I've written so far, by the way), first. Then I'm running away to Japan for about 9 days (yay!). Then when I come back, I'll check back on people's reaction. So, if you want the story continued, please review, or PM me. You know, at least express your interest. I need to make sure I actually have an audience because it's going to be a somewhat epic.


	2. Part II

PART II

'Thank you for making the time to attend this meeting,' the Soutaichou announced to the room of officers. The Taichou and Fukutaichou of each squad nodded. 'The Sixth Division has an important matter to report on behalf of the Fifth Division, of which the current leading officer, Hinamori Momo Fukutaichou is out of commission.'

Abarai Renji stepped forward. 'Earlier today, the Fifth Division was attacked by a group of Arrancar. It appeared that their target was Hinamori-fukutaichou. Both the Fourth and Sixth Divisions intervened and exterminated the Arrancar. However, they left us a message.' The redhead sighed. 'Why do I always have to say the weird stuff?'

He received a cold glare from none other than Kuchiki Byakuya. 'Ah. Erm, fine. I'll continue. Uh, Aizen wants the power of Hyourinmaru. We believe it has some link to that, uh, myth.' At this, Renji received more than just a few odd stares and raised eyebrows. 'Uh, you know, that myth? The one about Hyourinmaru? The_ only_ one, if I'm not mistaken…?'

'Thank you, Abarai-fukutaichou. Kyouraku-taichou, please send an officer down to the Transient World. Tell Hitsugaya-taichou's team to return immediately and that their mission is suspended.'

'Yes sir,' the man in a bright pink haori replied, summoning a Jigokuchou almost instantaneously.

Ukitake chuckled quietly. The young Taichou would not be happy; he made a mental note to get some candy ready. After all, it always helped the little one from the Eleventh.

'Back to the issue at hand,' the Soutaichou continued. 'The only possible reason Aizen would want Hyourinmaru would be because of the myth. One cannot do much with the zanpakutou of another. We can only conclude that he's going to destroy Soul Society with the combined power of the Heavenly Guardian and the sword's spirit.'

'N-no way…it's just a myth, isn't it?'

'Does that mean that all this while, the legend of Hyourinmaru was true? That we actually had such a power within our forces?'

'The story of reincarnation…was never true. It was only a fairytale for children, right?'

Quiet murmurs spread messily around the small room, but were quickly hushed with a sharp tap of an old wooden cane. 'Silence. Does Hinamori-fukutaichou know of this?'

'No sir.'

'We need to inform everyone of Fukutaichou rank and above of the situation. Nobody else is to know about this,' the old man rumbled.

'Yama-jii,' interrupted a lazy drawl that was immediately recognised as Kyouraku Shunsui. The occupants of the room turned their gaze to the elderly captain. 'If Aizen wanted Hitsugaya-kun, why did he target Momo-chan? He could have attacked the Tenth Division from the start if that was his real motive, ne?'

It was only after an uncomfortably long silence did Yamamoto reply. 'We will bide our time and wait for Aizen to make the first move. When he does, we will have all our defences ready. Until then, all of Soul Society will be under heavy guard. We will inform them of the current situation, but Hitsugaya-taichou is not to know about the Heavenly Guardian. Is that clear?' the elderly shinigami gazed downwards. 'If he learns to abuse that power, Soul Society will have a whole new enemy to deal with.'

He continued after a short pause. 'Soifon-taichou, I trust you will organise a guard system. Dismissed.'

0o0o0o0o0o0

'Taichou! I knew it! Caught you red-handed, too!' screamed a hysteric Matsumoto Rangiku. Whatever Kyouraku-taichou had done about summoning the team back had been more efficient than the blond Fukutaichou could have anticipated and as such, the slightly tipsy lady had escaped for yet another round at the bar.

'What did I do, and tell me about the meeting, that was apparently important enough to drag me back here? I was only told about the attack on the Fifth,' came the dull and monotonous reply from behind the stacks of paper on the table.

'Did? You're still doing it, taichou. The paperwork, of course! There's a Matsumoto Rangiku Rule that says that when you have free time, doing paperwork is absolutely prohibited!' she declared with one foot slammed onto the sofa.

'And there's a Hitsugaya Toushirou Rule that says that whenever I command Matsumoto-fukutaichou to do something, she does it or else her sake disappears. Tell me what happened in the meeting.'

'Nononono, Taichou! No can do; NC16 stuff.'

'NC16?' Hitsugaya exploded. Stacks fell off the table. 'Matsumoto, I'm nearly ten times that! You tell me what happened or the sake disappears,' he threatened, pointing a dripping brush at the top shelves and the boards across the ceiling.

'Your height tells me otherwise,' she replied lazily.

With another explosion, Hitsugaya slammed the brush into his tea and stormed out of the room. 'I'm going to the Fourth.'

'Ah, young love, it's a wonderful thing, Taichou.'

'I am NOT!'

'It's okay, Taichou! Denial is all part of teenage love! When you finally grow up to be mature like me, you'll broadcast it to everyone! Trust me!'

'SHUT UP!'

'Don't worry Taichou! These childish crushes wear off soon! Until then, have fun!'

After a final inhuman roar, the door slammed.

0o0o0o0o0o0

Hinamori Momo woke to an empty room. Thin rays of sunlight streamed through between the curtains and instinct had her sitting up, lifting her right hand to shield her eyes.

Hinamori never liked staying in the Fourth Division. The whole whiteness of the place was incredibly unnerving—the walls, the ceiling, the floor, the sheets, the curtains, even the yukata she was wearing.

_Voices from outside._

'Good afternoon, Taichou.' A short pause. 'Hinamori-fukutaichou is still unconscious, Sir.'

She scanned the room and quickly found Tobiume sitting on a sword rack on the far end of the room. Slipping quietly off the Western-style bed, she headed towards the rack, knocking a tray of medical supplies noisily to the floor as she did so.

_Oops._

'I don't think so,' it was a different voice this time. The door slid open. 'Bed-wetter, whaddya think you're doing?'

'Hitsugaya-kun! What are _you_ doing here?'

'Running away from Matsumoto, what else? The mad woman's mad again.'

Hinamori laughed lightly. The timid-looking Yamada Hanatarou inched in from the doorway. 'Umm, I'm sorry for interrupting, but-' he was cut off when Unohana-taichou stepped through behind him.

'It's good to see you're awake, Hinamori-fukutaichou. I take it you are feeling well?'

Hitsugaya rolled his eyes. 'Probably,' he drawled sarcastically

Hinamori only laughed harder. Hanatarou slowly inched back out of the room, with a terrified look plastered to his face.

* * *

_author's note:_  
alright, it actually wasn't ready for an update, because I wanted to write a few chapters ahead, but then I realised that I've probably been torturing any poor soul out there who might be waiting for an update, assuming there is one. I'm really, really, really, really sorry for not uh, writing. And also, just a warning, I've been trying to straighten out what happens in this fic and I realise that I might just take hitsugaya out of the official character listing for this fic. Sounds kinda strange, sure, but if/when I ever get down to writing more and bishing down the wall known as writer's block, and you play the wonderful waiting game with me, I'm sure we'll all find out eventually. Just give me some time, thanks.


	3. Part III

****

Disclaimer:

I do not own Bleach, caustic toilet cleaner or otherwise.

* * *

PART III

'Hinamori-fukutaichou, we have a shift,' called an officer from the crowded office.

'When and where?'

'Evening shift today, Fukutaichou. North District.'

_Shit. Such a late notice?_

'Section Two, move out! North District, now!'

* * *

'Taichou~'

'Shut up and go away, Matsumoto,' Hitsugaya mumbled.

'We have a shift now; you can't chase me away,' she whined. 'West District now.'

'Now?'

_Dammit. We just had one this morning._

'Call Section Eight. I'll head out first,' he said before adding under his breath, 'this system is so screwed up. If I didn't know better I'd think they drew lots.'

'What was that, Taichou?'

'Nothing.'

* * *

Ukitake only started panicking towards the end of the evening shift. He was nowhere near the chaos, but neither was he able to help the situation. A shout from one of the many hell butterflies around him caught his already-diverted attention.

'Communications Central! Appearance of Aizen in the Southern region! Seventh Division requesting reinforcements!'

That was when it all started. He was about to direct all others on patrol towards the South when more and more of the Divisions began calling for backup.

'Communications Central, Ukitake-taichou sir! Thirteenth Division requesting reinforcements! Aizen has made his move; alert the Soutaichou!'

'Fifth Division, sir!' Hinamori's panicked voice rose above the rest. Ukitake could almost see the tears streaming down her face. 'Aizen is in District Fifty-three of Northern Rukongai! Fifth Division, calling for backup, please sir!'

_Shit. Only one is real. Only one Division needs the backup. Or it could be none. What if none of them are real? What if all of them are just an illusion? Is the real one here at all? Shit. We need Ichigo. _

Another shout jolted him back to reality. 'Aizen has appeared in Seireitei,' came the unmistakeable voice of Madarame Ikkaku, with delighted, high-pitched squeals in the background.

_More?_

'Ukitake-taichou! West Rukongai, Third District, Aizen,' the distinctive tone of Matsumoto echoed from yet another hell butterfly. 'We need backup!'

_Why all this all of a sudden? What is Aizen after? _

_Which is the real one? I can't do anything until we know…_

* * *

The small, pink-haired girl squealed in delight as a smiling Aizen Sousuke strolled into view. 'What're you doing here, Four Eyes? Are you gonna fight?' she pitched herself from Pachinko's head before staring up at the "traitor bastard", or so Pachinko had instructed her to call the brown-haired man. Without waiting for a reply, she fled to a nearby rooftop where she chirped at her Third Seat to "show that Traitor Bastard your nun-chuck"

'Who the hell do ya think I am? I'm not Bruce Lee, ya know!' replied what she identified as Pachinko in Pissed Mode. 'Now, you four-eyed traitor bastard,' he snarled viciously.

'Now, now, what kind of language have you been teaching the girl?' Aizen smiled coldly.

'Heaps!' came the enthusiastic response from a certain rooftop. 'Wanna hear?'

The men ignored the pink-haired load of energy as she spouted words that would earn Ikkaku a letter of retrenchment had the Soutaichou been there, instead engaging in immediate combat.

'Go, go, nun-chuck!'

'SHADDAP!'

* * *

Sweat mingled with tears as they slid down her face in a salty mixture.

_You were on patrol, you should have expected it, _Hinamori scolded herself. Steadying the pronged blade of Tobiume, she aimed it at the tall figure standing before her. The person she had idolised. The person she had believed in all her life.

But now, it's different.

Eight explosions of fire erupted from her blade, circling around her brown-haired target.

The target was to be eliminated, no matter what.

Aizen effortlessly deflected all her attacks; she could feel her reiatsu slowly draining from her with every ball of fire she shot in the man's direction; she could see more of her subordinates fall with each passing moment.

These were the subordinates that entrusted their safety to her hands, and as Fukutaichou, she was failing them miserably. She bent into a crouch, just like how she was taught all those years ago.

_Taught by Aizen-taichou_

Tobiume gripped tightly in her hand, her muscles tensed, bending even lower. Poised to attack, she angled her blade once again, just like how she was taught. Hinamori lunged forward, plunging her blade towards the man's side.

_Don't aim for the heart_

Why hadn't he drawn his sword?

She lowered her blade a fraction.

_Aim for the area just under the ribs_

The young girl sped up.

_Any higher and your attack could be blocked by a rib_

Where did he keep his sword? It wasn't with him.

_Just like that, your attack could slide from fatal to an easily treated wound_

She steadied her right arm.

_It's done like this_

She plunged her blade forcefully towards Aizen's abdomen. To her surprise, the man quickly sidestepped, catching hold of Tobiume's guard, fluidly sliding his hand over hers that were gripping the hilt.

'Where were you aiming?' he questioned mockingly, flipping the sword around in a single, practised movement. 'It's done like this,' he smirked slightly, sliding the tip of the blade smoothly under Hinamori's left lung.

The last thing she registered as her knees buckled and darkness took over, was a strong voice she recognised from her academy days, screaming her name desperately as she sank to the sandy ground.

* * *

The taichou had already released his bankai, yet nothing was happening.

No, too much was happening.

Tetsuzaemon Iba could do nothing but watch the fallen bodies of his subordinates; to wait for the pending backup; to wait for the Fourth Division. To watch the ugly traitor take down Kokujyou Tengen Myou-ou with almost effortless ease.

The helplessness was killing him.

He could feel the reiatsu level dropping around him.

Why the backup was still unconfirmed was beyond him.

As the large armour that was Komamura-taichou's bankai collapsed to the ground, he drew his own sword and steadied his arm.

_It would take much more than this to take Soul Society down._

_It would take even more than this to take what you want from us._

He knew he was lying to himself. And he knew that living on lies never got you anywhere, and the one who showed them exactly what that meant was Aizen Sousuke.

* * *

Hitsugaya Toushirou was, to put it mildly, pissed to see a certain bespectacled traitor meet his division with none other than that disgusting smile of his. 'Aizen Sousuke,' he snarled. 'What the _hell_ are you doing here?'

'Me? I thought you would have figured it out by now…I have a little…_score_ to settle with you.' The smile on his face widened. 'Now, Rangiku-san, if you would leave us alone?'

'Hell no,' the strawberry-blond fukutaichou scowled. 'In fact, I think I'll do the exact opposite,' she said quietly, simultaneously drawing Haineko from its sheath.

'Matsumoto. Put it away; contact Ukitake-taichou and request reinforcements. Now.' There was a long pause.

'No.'

'Who do you think you are?' his tone softened. 'I'm a taichou, isn't it my duty to protect my subordinates?'

'To hell with your duties,' the once dignified woman spat. 'What about mine? The one about not letting a taichou die?'

'You can bring it up with the authorities later, and fulfil your duty as a fukutaichou and _listen_ to my orders.'

'Fine,' she whined. Before leaving, she turned back for no more than a second her face unreadable and her voice solemn yet trembling. 'Taichou. Don't release your sword…please.'

He ignored her, but maybe he would keep that in mind. He had missed a meeting, after all. 'Section Eight, retreat and protect yourselves. If possible, report this to the First Division.'

Those reinforcements he was sending for better come _damn_ quick.

* * *

Abarai Renji had absolutely no idea what was happening. All he'd gathered was that something had gone wrong somewhere and his division had been taken off the next day's schedule and then dispatched to the different areas.

Muttering curses and swears under his breath as he trekked through the Northern forests, Renji grumpily led a team of officers out to the wilderness.

'Damn tree roots,' he mumbled as he stepped over yet another one. The red-haired man was ready to threaten the existence of tree roots when he stepped into the clearing only to see his classmate and colleague impaled on her own blade.

_Shit. _

'Momo!'

_Shit. It's Aizen._

Zabimaru was out and pointed once again at Aizen. 'Bankai, Hihio Zabimaru!' his shout echoed through the deserted area. Smoke fogged the vision of everyone present as the large bone serpent took its place around its wielder. Commanding his subordinates to get Hinamori out of the chaos, he swung his zanpakutou. The serpent flew forward, almost like a rope, colliding into the ground where the traitor once stood.

Whipping around, Renji surveyed the area quickly, lashing out with his zanpakutou towards where Aizen had relocated using _shunpo_. 'Hikotsu Taihou!'

One by one, each section of the serpent detached from the other as a flame of red reiatsu shot through them before finally sailing out through the open jaws of the creature.

Aizen only smirked coolly. 'Well, it appears, Abarai-san, that you're a little too late.' With that, the figure shattered gently into tiny fragments before dissipating into the heavy atmosphere.

'What?'

Then realisation dawned on him.

_Anyone who sees the shikai of Kyouka Suigetsu is susceptible to its illusions until its wielder perishes_

'Shit…Retreat!' he yelled hoarsely at the small group under his authority. 'Take her to the Fourth.'

* * *

The blond Fukutaichou of the Tenth Division refused to believe the sight that met her eyes. Here she stood, at the exact same spot she had left her division not long ago, now flanked by Section Two of the Eleventh Division, only now the small dusty clearing was completely devoid of life. Entire Sections couldn't disappear into thin air, she attempted to convince herself.

She prayed fervently that her Taichou had not just disappeared together with one-tenth of her Division.

* * *

Ukitake Jyuushirou was flustered, ready to pull his hair out and even more ready to evict his third-seats from the room.

'Kazuki-kun! Summon backup from the Sixth Division.'

'Yes sir!'

He heard a voice shriek through a Jigokuchou. 'Communication Central, sir! The opponent has retreated, Seventh Division, Iba Tetsuzaemon requesting aid from the Fourth Division!'

The message soon mirrored itself from almost every Jigokuchou, with each division reporting the leave of Aizen and requesting medical aid.

'Kazuki-kun! Stop! Backup is no longer required.'

'Yes sir!'

'Go to the Fourth Division and send relief teams to the locations.'

'Yes sir!'

Ukitake pitied the young Shinigami. 'Uh, you may go now…?'

'Yes sir!' the young man cried as he sped out of the room.

Meanwhile, the senior Taichou picked up a Jigokuchou which, he noticed, had yet to come in with a similar report and request. 'Rangiku-chan?' he asked into it. 'Do you need medical relief where you are?'

The silence that followed was unbearable, and Ukitake feared for the worst, until a short, soft reply made its way back through the butterfly.

'…No. We don't.'

* * *

_author's note: I just spent the past few hours trying to finish up Part IV and it's awesomely short. I have absolutely no idea how to continue without extending it into an epic-lengthed thing. and yes, I admit, that I've been procrastinating for incredibly long. and, well, this fic, given its premise, will turn angsty soon. I hope. if not, then I could always change the genre...and as to the mystery part...I can only hope I begin to mystify some people soon. and also, I promise that this fic will have some entertaining bits in it!_

_please...review? it would make my dayyyy. thanks so much for reading!_


	4. Part IV

note: liteitai refers to the messengers of Seireitei running around with the puffy pants and the book-like hat on their heads. They're from the Onmitsukidou, which is the squad of sneaky ninjas from the Second Division.

disclaimer! I don't own, not at all, or else bleach would have ended together with the Seireitei invasion arc and arrancars wouldnt exist and Aizen and cronies would just be evils floating at the back of our ignorant limbo.

* * *

PART 1V

It only took an idiot to figure out what had happened. A bunch of Aizens had appeared, decimated most of the higher-ranked shinigami, and then disappeared, together with Hitsugaya Toushirou and Section Eight of the Tenth Division, which was more than likely dead.

It was _such_ a stupid mistake.

Matsumoto jabbed her brush onto the paperwork until a big black splotch covered at least half of it.

So what if they had hidden the legend from the kid all these years?

She flipped the brush around and used the stiff wooden tip to spear the piece of paper over and over again.

They could have just told him everything there and then, explained everything to everyone, and maybe everything would have gone so much better.

Crushing the unfortunate piece of drenched, holey paper, she flattened the papery ball under her palm.

Instead of guarding an entire country, wouldn't it be much easier to place a single object under heavy guard? If they had just told him the whole story, they could have taken Hyourinmaru and placed it under protection or something. Why did Soul Society keep making stupid mistakes like this _all_ the time?

She hurled it through the open doorway where she heard an unceremonious "Ouchie".

_Oops._

'Momo-chan?'

'Rangiku-san, can I come in?'

'Sure,' she replied. 'Have a seat.'

Obliging, the fukutaichou of the Fifth Division sank uncomfortably into the couch. 'It's been, a week?' she murmured, mainly to herself.

'Yeah, about there. Why?'

'Do you think Hitsugaya-kun is,' she buried her face into a grubby cushion, '…dead? A-Aizen didn't…'

'Hey, don't think that way, okay?' the blond Fukutaichou pulled the other into a hug. Without warning, the small girl was sobbing hysterically into her shihakushou; she could barely make out what Hinamori was saying.

'I-I can't just sit here and,' the girl was now furiously wiping her face to no avail. 'I swore that, that…' her voice trailed off into sobs and Matsumoto's shihakushou grew from damp to soaked. Matsumoto gently extricated Hinamori from herself and offered her a tissue (another invention from the Transient World…) before proceeding to rub a hand comfortingly up and down the girl's back in a motherly fashion.

* * *

There was a quiet knock on the door to the Tenth Division office before it slid open almost noiselessly, revealing a member of the liteitai kneeling on the floor.

'Yes?' Matsumoto asked tiredly from her position on the infamous couch.

'The Soutaichou has called for an immediate meeting of all Taichou and Fukutaichou available in Meeting Hall 3.' The man from the Onmitsukidou stated from his position on the floor with his head bowed.

Having dismissed him with a casual wave of her hand, Matsumoto scowled. The single word of _'Now?' _crossed her mind before being swiftly replaced by that of _'and how many people do you expect to turn up?' _She cast a glance at the sleeping form of Hinamori curled up on the other end of the sofa and sighed before rising to leave.

She figured being asleep would equate to being unavailable and left the small girl a note which she folded neatly and placed on the table.

* * *

Yamamoto Shigekuni Genryuusai took in the sparsely-populated Meeting Hall with a sigh and a sharp tap on the floor with Ryuujin Jakka. 'Kindly provide an update on the current status of each division.'

Kusajishi Yachiru bounced forward. 'Can I go first? Can I go first? Please, Yama-jiichan?' she smiled charmingly before proceeding. 'Well, first we were kind of just walking around and making sure that nobody got hurt because Ken-chan said so and so we all gotta listen and then suddenly Four-Eyes Traitor Bastard showed up!'

The entire room glared at a certain Zaraki Kenpachi.

'And then Pachinko was like, WHOOSH! And then he went RAAAAHR! And then he did something cool that went something like FWOOSH! And then he went KACHIANG! And after that it was all PIAKKK and then for some funny reason there was a ZHOOOPH and Four-Eyes Traitor Bastard disappeared!'

Everyone turned to the Taichou of the Eleventh Division who glared back with just as much fiery.

'Zaraki-taichou,' began Yamamoto. 'Would you restate what your Fukutaichou has related to us?'

Giving a bored look, the man who towered over many replied lazily, 'Nahhh, I think she summed it up pretty well.'

'Any casualties?'

'Does it sound like it?'

The old man gave up. 'Never mind. Kurotsuchi-taichou, why don't you share with everyone your insight on this particular incident?

The Taichou of the Twelfth Division stepped forward and began. 'At 8.26 PM Tuesday last week, there was a slight disturbance between the realms, which was shortly followed afterward by several Divisions reporting the appearance of Aizen. Such an occurrence in unprecedented and we can only conclude that the motive in this assault was to make a dent in our numbers.' He stepped back.

Nodding, Yamamoto looked up. 'Does anyone else have any other issues pertaining to this?'

'Pretty-boy's got something to say,' drawled Kenpachi.

'First of all, Zaraki-taichou, I resent that nickname,' Kuchiki Byakuya deadpanned. 'Secondly, should this happen again, what measures will we take against it?'

'We shall summon the Substitute Shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo first as a precaution. Should this recur, do not attack. Hone your defence, and if this happens again, hold out until the problem is solved. Understood?'

'Yes,' someone mumbled, and the old bearded man almost rolled his eyes at the enthusiasm of his ranks. Almost.

'Yamamoto-soutaichou!' all eyes turned to the source of the outburst. 'Aren't we going to search for my Taichou? Do you have any idea what this is doing to Hinamori-chan? I don't suppose any of you realise she's blamed herself for what's happened?' Matsumoto folded her arms over her well-endowed front (a feat in itself, Kyouraku considered) and glared at nothing in particular.

It was times like this where Yamamoto felt like a grandfather out to spoil his grandchildren rotten. 'Yes,' he sighed. 'We shall organise an investigation and search party in the near future. Kurotsuchi-taichou, kindly contact Urahara Kisuke and ask for the Substitute Shinigami. Anything else?'

'Can we have a tea-party today?' Apparently oblivious to the situation, Yachiru flew around the room. Silence struck its occupants as they hurriedly regained their composure from the sudden invitation.

'Dismissed,' announced Yamamoto.

'Can we-'

'No.'

* * *

Hinamori Momo awoke once again to an empty room. Blinking the grit out of her eyes, she unfolded the small piece of paper that lay on the table.

_Momo,  
they called a meeting, but I decided to let you sleep. There's food in the kitchen if you're hungry.  
-Rangiku_

She clutched a cushion to her chest. Ignoring the note, the girl hugged her knees and buried her face into the cushion.

_There was once a beautiful and powerful Heavenly Guardian. With a power unrivalled, it is said that she had a spirit of a dragon of ice more powerful than any other._

Her tears overflowed from her chocolate-coloured eyes, quickly being absorbed by the cloth of the cushion.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Why did her baby brother have to be born with such a burden?

* * *

'Who, me?' Kurosaki Ichigo was, to say the least, nonplussed.

'Yes, you, you fool!' Rukia barked back at him. 'How many Substitute Shinigami do we have? And could you open this for me?' she waved a small packet of orange juice under Ichigo's nose.

'Now?' he complained. 'But I'm in school!' Ichigo gestured at his attire.

The juice box hit him squarely between the eyes. 'I don't think opening this would take the entire day, you know,' the petite shinigami growled.

'No, not that!' the adolescent male cried out in exasperation as he punched the plastic straw through the foil. 'About going to Soul Society. Again.' He sucked noisily at Rukia's drink before handing it to her.

The look of utter disgust and horror on her face, Ichigo concluded, was absolutely priceless.

So he gave in to her and agreed. .

* * *

'Excellent timing, Kuchiki-san,' exclaimed Kyouraku, clad in his pink haori as usual, as they stepped through the Senkaimon. 'Kurosaki Ichigo, your presence is required in the Twelfth Division. Come with me.'

Ichigo stared dumbly at the retreating back of the Eighth Division Taichou. 'What did he say I was supposed to do?'

'To follow him to the Twelfth Division. And if you keep standing there gaping like a goldfish I doubt you'll ever get there.' Rukia stated matter-of-factly as Ichigo raced off in a blur of orange and black.

'Crap! Which way did he go?' the teenager's voice echoed around the maze of corridors.

* * *

'Explain why you have brought all of us here on such a short notice,' Yamamoto barked at the poor member of the Twelfth Division.

'I-I'm sorry…but the communications screen has been receiving a signal for a while now, and we managed to make a connection a few minutes ago, and….and-'

'This kid could do with some training over at my division,' Kenpachi noted.

'It would be appreciated if you could refrain from any interruptions, Zaraki-taichou,' the Soutaichou snapped back oddly ill-manneredly.

'Um, maybe, everyone should proceed into the room,' the timid Taiin gestured towards a door.

The higher-rankings of each division proceeded through the door into the room where a large image was projected onto the wall, drowned in the loud humming noise of the machinery.

Upon entering the room, shock overwhelmed Hinamori Momo.

'S-Shiro…chan?'

* * *

_author's note: ahaha. I extended it from where it had supposedly ended when I wrote part 3. and now part 5 is kind of short...but for that one, I really have no way in extending it any further than what's already been done. you'll find out when the time comes...maybe. so I'll apologise first, for chapter shortness. _

**_important! This probably concerns you:_**_ please, please, please review. I noticed that there are waaaay more people reading than reviewing, and not to sound fussy or demanding or anything, but could you guys please contribute something that would help me? Things like whether you liked it, how I could have made you like it more, why you hated it. Also, something I'm a little concerned about: is the chapter length okay? It normally hovers around between 1500 - 2000 words, and I was wondering whether it's too short/long for you guys, and things like that. Please, please let me know if I'm doing things right, or wrong, or terribly because this is my first time going this far into such...uh...unfamiliar territory, genre-wise. _

_AND! I started a poll on my profile, it would be appreciated if someone would vote...thank you for reading Maybe! really, thank you so much. -bows-_


	5. Part V

disclaimer: no, I do not own bleach, or else the darn thing would have ended a loooooong time ago.

and, ooh, finally, internet. okay, so I rewrote this and now it's the longest chapter. **please read this bit, at the very least. it might help**: please imagine that the entire chapter is in italics, because i tried to put it all in italics but ended up with a headache and thought that all of you would get one too. not gonna say why it's in italics though, because you should be figuring that part out.

and! I have finally reorganised my story plan and this story should end in 15 chapters. just in case you wanted to know. please read and enjoy and review to tell me what you think! pretty please? I know it's been a while...I'll update again when I can!

* * *

PART V

'Granny! Granny!' A pair of small feet ran noisily along the wooden floor of the house along the river. 'There's a baby girl in the rubbish dump!' the child panted out between breaths. 'Granny, you have to help her before they take the rubbish away! Please?'

The old woman wrapped her long, greying hair into a knot behind her head and stood, smiling at the child that gazed pleadingly up into her eyes. 'Of course we'll help her. Would you like to come?'

The child nodded excitedly. 'This way!' and the elderly woman hitched the skirt of her yukata up to chase after her grandchild. Weaving through the throngs of people in the market place, the old woman apologised every few seconds as she accidently shoved the crowd and stepped on their feet.

Upon stepping into the rubbish dump for the district, the small girl large, hazelnut eyes picked her way around the mounds of waste, all the while shouting for her grandmother to run faster. 'Here, here!' she screamed. 'Granny, help her!'

The woman, known as "Granny" throughout their district of Rukongai by all young and old, knelt down to scoop the crumpled form of a toddler into her arms.

Momo watched nervously. 'Granny? Can you help her? Will I have a baby sister?' she brightened slightly at the thought.

She watched silently as her Granny laid the little girl on the ground. She watched in awe as her Granny's hands glowed a bright blue. She watched curiously as the blue light enveloped the small girl. She watched with relief as she noticed some colour return to the baby's pale face, as her fingers curled and uncurled in the dirt.

* * *

Granny knelt amidst the waste and began channelling her reiatsu into the child's body.

_I cannot feel this child's spirit_

She gazed sadly at the small child caked in dirt, struggling to sense any form of life in the shell of a toddler. She had helped many before, but never had she come across a case such as this. She probed further, searching, hoping to awaken the child's spirit.

_I'll give you everything I've got, so please…please…_

She poured her reiatsu into the child, watching, waiting, as beads of sweat slid down her temple and fatigue began to affect her.

_Please…_

The child moved. It was almost unnoticeable, but enough for Granny to know that the worst was over.

_Thank you, thank you so much, Kami…_

Granny gathered the small child – he couldn't be much older than a toddler – gently into her arms and Momo immediately perked up, smoothing her loose brown hair behind her ears. 'Is she better now?' smiling even wider, she inquired, 'will I have a baby sister now?'

Granny couldn't help but smile back at her grandchild despite cradling a delicate life on the brink of death. 'I'm afraid you won't have a baby sister, Momo-chan.'

The child's face clouded over almost instantly as her lips curled into a pout that was quickly replaced by an expression of horror. 'No, why? Didn't Granny save the little girl? You mean…'

Granny laughed as she ruffled Momo's hair. 'You're going to have a baby brother now, Momo-chan.'

She halted momentarily before jumping and squealing happily, rambling endlessly on the things she would do with her baby brother, all the while skipping deliriously in circles around her grandmother.

* * *

Momo hovered over the white-haired child lying in Granny's futon. She had to remind herself that the baby was a boy, despite it having been several weeks since their first encounter.

Granny told her that he had been very sick, and it was likely that he didn't know anything because there hadn't been anyone to teach him anything, so she had to be patient with him. Nevertheless, she found herself demanding countless achievements from him.

'Shiro-chan!' she had declared when Granny asked what his name should be. The nickname, much to Granny's dismay, stuck although she had taken the liberty to name the child herself.

'Granny was really nice to you, you know,' she announced to the toddler. Granny was also slightly amused at Momo's insistence that the toddler was still a baby. 'So, you must be really nice to her too. You must be a good boy and listen to what Granny says. And when you go to the toilet, you must wash your hands when you're done. And you can only eat sweets once a day, because Granny says they make you get…get…uh…die…diebeelies! That's bad for you. And when you eat your food, you can't leave anything behind or else when you grow up and marry, your wife will be ugly!'

The young girl was met with a large pair of confused teal eyes, to which she returned the same perplexed look. 'I don't get it,' Momo confessed to Granny, who only laughed.

'I think he's the one who doesn't get it.' smiling, Granny knelt down and called gently, 'Toushirou-kun?' one could almost see his ears prick up, much like those of a cat. Slowly, he pushed himself into a sitting position and shuffled his way towards Granny.

'No fair,' pouted Momo. She seemed to be doing a lot of that lately, Granny noticed slightly guiltily that she hadn't been giving her as much attention as before. 'Why does Shiro-chan only listen to Granny?' Momo continued.

'Why don't you teach him how to speak while I prepare some dinner?' Granny suggested, attempting to ignore the exhaustion that was eating at her.

'Okay!' Momo agreed and excitedly gathered the small, slightly shell-shocked boy into her lap. Hugging him, she whispered into his hair, 'I hope you never grow up, then I can have a baby brother forever.'

* * *

'Granny!' the girl had grown slightly, her hair now held securely in two pigtails with ribbons. 'Make Shiro-chan let me go to the toilet!' Momo complained, attempting to pry her fingers out of Toushirou's death grip. The boy walked clumsily behind her, the fingers of his left hand hanging in his small mouth while those of his right hand wrapped themselves tightly around Momo's.

The only adult of the household smiled as she reached out towards the younger child. 'Toushirou-kun, why don't you let Momo nee-chan go for a while?'

Adamantly, he shook his head, still sucking at his fingers. Momo jumped anxiously, shaking her arm. 'Please? I really, really, really need to go!'

Granny tried again. 'Toushirou-kun, come here so that Granny can tell you a story.'

The child's gaze switched between Granny and Momo before he hesitantly released Momo and moved to settle into Granny's lap as Momo sprinted for the toilet.

* * *

Momo twirled happily in front of her small family, clutching a red and white bundle. 'I got accepted into the Academy!' she squealed. 'And now I can become a shinigami just like the rich children in Seireitei!' she babbled excitedly about the new friends she would make, life in Seireitei, and, of course, how much she would miss her Granny and her baby brother.

Toushirou scowled. 'I am not a baby brother.'

'But you're MY baby brother, and that's all that matters,' Momo twirled once more before seizing the younger boy into a hug which he quickly wriggled out of. 'I'll be leaving in a week's time, to stay in the dormitory at the Academy. I'm going to miss both of you,' Momo grasped her brother's hand.

'Well, I won't,' Toushirou fibbed stubbornly, fixing his gaze onto the wooden floor. 'I don't care. I…I have Granny,' he stammered as small dark stains appeared on the floor at his feet. Turning his face away from his family, the boy sprinted out of the door.

* * *

'Granny?' Toushirou stepped in cautiously. Granny always looked tired, and she always looked thinner. 'I bought ama-natto again,' he informed her, extending a small paper wrapper towards her.

'Toushirou-kun? Did anything happen at the store?' Granny was always concerned about him. She was the only one who ever was.

Toushirou's hand flew to his bruised nose as his thoughts flew to what had happened at the market. Some…oddly-proportioned woman had ambushed him from behind with her…um…friends attached to her front. They weren't normal, and neither was she. It also happened to be entirely her fault that there was currently a reddish strip of a bruise across the bridge of his nose.

'Nothing,' Toushirou said, rubbing the slightly raw area. 'I fell. Do you want some?' he offered Granny the sweets once again, trying to change the topic.

Just then, the shoji slid open with a loud clatter and a shout. 'Anyone home? I'm coming in!' the voice hollered.

Toushirou found it oddly familiar.

Dressed in the same black clothes and pink scarf, the woman from earlier stormed into the house, stopping right in front of Toushirou. He wriggled his way sideways along the wall, desperately trying to get his burning face away from those deadly, female-unique….friends.

'Hi. My name's Matsumoto Rangiku. You must be the kid from the market.'

'Hey, I have a name, you know,' Toushirou squeaked out, still trying to avoid Matsumoto's endowments while remaining polite.

'Yeah! Right kid, right house! Knew you could do it!' she squealed to herself, posing for no-one in particular. Turning her attention back to the boy, she spoke seriously. 'I need to speak privately with you.'

'Uh…um…you…should ask Granny first?' he stammered out.

'Good idea.' Matsumoto declared, turning to Granny. 'I'll, uh, speak with him outside. I won't traumatise him! Promise!'

Granny only smiled and nodded graciously. Taking this as her cue, Matsumoto grabbed Toushirou and dragged him to the front porch where he would eat watermelons with Momo nee-chan and watch the sunset with her.

He hadn't sat there for at least four years, ever since Momo left.

Naturally, it was Matsumoto who spoke first. 'I was told that there was a disturbance in the reiatsu here. Didn't think it'd be you, though. Care to explain?'

Clearly, every word she had uttered and completely stunned and confused the boy. 'Rei…what?' Toushirou asked innocently. 'What does that have to do with me? What do you want?'

Okay, change of tactic. Reaching a hand out to Toushirou's chest, she asked quietly, 'do you feel someone in there, asking to be let free? Do you hear someone in there, asking for you to speak to them?'

Toushirou was quiet. Looking up, he shook his head.

'You are_ such _a terrible liar,' the shinigami in front of him sighed. 'Answer me, honestly,' she pushed.

The child paused.

'I…there is a dragon. I see him every night, when I sleep. He's always talking, and shouting, but…I can't hear him.' Toushirou admitted to his knees. 'Is that bad?'

'No,' Matsumoto smiled reassuringly.

Toushirou scowled. 'You suck at lying too, you know.'

'Kid, this is serious, okay? You have to believe in whatever I say to you now. You know that dragon you talked about?' he nodded. 'He's powerful, and in time, you will be too, but now the dragon is wild and your job is to tame him. Until you tame him, this dragon is going to remain wild, and the power he holds escapes from you all the time. This power is hurting your granny,' she told the child as gently as she could.

'No!' he cried out. 'I don't want to hurt Granny! Granny is…I…'

'That's why I'm here,' Matsumoto continued. 'Until you tame this dragon, every day you spend with your granny is hurting her, and at this rate, she's not going to have very long to live.'

The boy seemed close to tears; he bit his lip, refusing to look at her.

'Go to the Academy, kid.' Matsumoto asserted. 'They'll teach you how to tame that dragon of yours, and how to speak with him. When you're done, you can come back here, okay? So go tell your granny, alright?' her mood changed suddenly. 'Entrance tests begin tomorrow! I'd better see you there or I'll kick your little butt!' Matsumoto cried out playfully.

Toushirou scrambled away from her and towards Granny, shutting the shoji behind him.

* * *

'Granny…I…I'm going to the Academy's entrance tests. Starting tomorrow…' he didn't know how to finish his sentence. Now, Granny was the only one out there who loved him and took him as he was, and here he was being an ingrate, leaving her for his benefit. He stared at the wooden panelling beneath his knees.

'Sure, take care, and don't get hurt, okay? Maybe you'll get to meet Momo nee-chan again,' Granny smiled at Toushirou, her old grey eyes twinkling.

_Yeah, but I'll never see Granny again…_Toushirou nodded numbly, unable to believe what he was doing to his one and only Granny.


	6. Part VI

**Disclaimer: no, I do not own Bleach. Yes, I have yet to come up with another corny way of saying this. **

PART VI

'S-Shiro…chan?' Momo uttered in disbelief, defensively taking a step back from the screen as if it would lash out and hurt her.

'Ah! It's Chibi-kun!' Yachiru chirped joyously.

'Hitsugaya-taichou,' commanded Yamamoto-soutaichou. 'Return to Seireitei immediately.'

To the surprise of everyone in the room, the larger-than-life projection of the prodigy hastily shook his head, refusing to make any eye contact with anyone. 'No…' he whispered softly. 'No! I'm not going back!' Hitsugaya shouted suddenly at the screen of his colleagues, finally bringing his gaze up in an icy teal glare. A multitude of emotions came rushing up at everyone who met his gaze; the young shinigami's large eyes brimmed with tears and mixed emotions. In an instant, Matsumoto could pick out fear, and one that surprised her greatly was that of betrayal.

Ukitake stepped forward, almost instinctively in his fatherly disposition. 'Hitsugaya-kun,' he coaxed gently. 'Why don't you come back? We're all very concerned about you, you know.'

Catching on to what the sickly Taichou was attempting to achieve, everyone else quickly began to nod and pull on worried looks.

Unconvinced, Hitsugaya began screaming again. 'No, you're _not_! You're not! Nobody is!' he flew into a rage, repeating the same words over and over again before finally crumpling to his knees, his right fist slid down the screen. 'Liar,' Hitsugaya muttered to his feet, visibly shaking as tears fell. Raising a tear-stained face to meet the shinigami, he choked out, 'maybe I'll come back when you stop _lying_ to me about _everything_.'

'My, my,' a familiar voice joined the conversation. A familiar set of brown hair, warm brown eyes and a white outfit stepped between Hitsugaya and the screen.

Clapping a hand to her mouth, Momo gasped. _No, it can't be…_

'How you've treated him,' the defector rebuked. 'No wonder he doesn't want to go back, hmm, Hitsugaya-kun? Maybe he wants someone tell him the truth about everything?' turning his attention away from the Gotei Thirteen, the man proceeded to place an arm around the boy's shoulders. 'Shall we go, my child?'

Clutching the cuff of one white sleeve and wiping his tears on it, Hitsugaya nodded meekly. 'Hai…Aizen-sama.'

'"Father" is fine,' the traitor corrected gently, casting a cold smirk at the screen as he helped the child to his feet.

* * *

Chaos broke out in the Twelfth Division, beginning with Hinamori Momo. Burying herself into Ukitake's front, she sobbed loudly and uncontrollably. 'No…he can't! I can't!' the girl curled herself against Ukitake, scrubbing at her face with her fists. 'I promised…' she gasped out, 'to protect him! That…that I would look out for…for my baby brother…and I swore that…I took an oath and…and…I'm…I'm so, so sorry!' she cried out.

'Silence!' Yamamoto barked at the room of Taichou and Fukutaichou, only to go unheeded. Many heated discussions drowned out whatever the Soutaichou had to say while his eyebrows knitted themselves closer and closer to each other with every passing second.

'Does this mean we're short yet another Taichou?'

'Was that treason?'

'It is highly likely that Hitsugaya-taichou has been influenced by Aizen's powers.'

'I think not. He should no longer be considered a shinigami.'

'I wonder where that was…it didn't look like Hueco Mundo, did it? Hey, Ichigo, d'you know where it is?'

'Uh…_not_ Karakura?'

'Thanks. That helped.'

'What does Aizen plan to do?'

'It must have something to do with the Heavenly Guardian and Hyourinmaru…'

Hinamori tried hard not to burst into tears again, hearing everyone talk about Hitsugaya, referring to him as if he were an object.

_But they're right_, she tried to reason with herself. _The myth was right. It's not a myth. It tells the truth. The Heavenly Guardian was stripped of her powers in a battle with Kerberos but managed to escape with her life. Many years later, a child appeared in rukongai, to whom Hyourinmaru approached while he was still young. Many rejoiced, believing that the Heavenly Guardian had returned to them to protect them and their realm. _

They had denied her brother the childhood everyone deserved, given him a burden nobody deserved, and she felt as if it had all been her fault.

The sharp voice of Yamamoto-soutaichou snapped her promptly out of her thoughts. Everyone, miraculously including Kenpachi, turned their attention towards the Soutaichou. 'Based on the recent turn of events,' the old man began, 'Hitsugaya Toushirou is no longer considered one of our ranks as it is evident that he has defected and joined Aizen and his army. As such, any attempts to bring him back will be cancelled. Should any of you encounter him, he is to be arrested. That is all. Dismissed.'

_No…this couldn't be happening…_Hinamori clenched her hands into fists, closing them around the fabric of her shihakushou. 'You can't!'

'Can't what, may I ask?' Kuchiki Byakuya asked.

'You can't pretend that Shiro-chan doesn't exist anymore,' she said shakily, fighting her tears back – and losing. 'He's _my_ baby brother! He's still so small!' the girl protested. 'You have to help him! Get him back!' tears streamed freely down Momo's red cheeks as she screamed herself hoarse. 'He's still a _child!_'

Yamamoto glanced at Unohana. Sighing, she guided the hysterical Fukutaichou out of the room, steering her in the direction of the Fourth Division.

* * *

'I refuse to stay here,' Hinamori protested stubbornly to Unohana-taichou who had ushered her into a room with a bed.

The Taichou merely smiled and replied, 'and I refuse to release you until you calm down.'

'_And_,' Hinamori emphasised, 'I refuse to listen to you.'

'Which is why I refuse to release you until you calm down,' Unohana reasoned. 'Drink this up,' she added, producing a cup filled with what appeared to be tea.

Eyeing it suspiciously, Hinamori grasped the cup in both hands. 'And this will put me to sleep,' she predicted.

'Quite right,' Unohana commented smoothly.

'Why can't you just give me something to make me happy?'

'That's called sake, Momo-chan,' interrupted a voice from the doorway. Upon closer inspection, it happened to belong to a certain Matsumoto Rangiku.

'Whatever happened to chocolate?' complained Hinamori. 'Happy endorphins and all that rubbish…'

'It is unhealthy and the Fourth Division does not recommend it, neither do we deal with it.'

'You make it sound like drugs. It's just _chocolate_.'

'You could try sake too.'

'Only to return with countless ailments. Alternatively, you could merely consume the drink that I have provided you with,' Unohana suggested pleasantly yet seemingly dangerously.

Hinamori slept peacefully, an empty cup sitting on the table.

* * *

Matsumoto glared furiously from the desk at a certain Kurosaki Ichigo who happened to be languishing in her usual spot, making noisy sucking noises with a little box and a tube…she couldn't quite recall what it was called, she'd never had one.

She contemplated snatching it from the obnoxious teen's hands but wisely decided against it when the substitute shinigami in question gave her a knowing glance.

'So, Ichigo, you're not going to listen to the fart, are you?'

'About what? Skipping school? Girlfriends? '

Matsumoto sighed. 'Not the old fart running a clinic in Karakura. The old fart running an army in a mythical realm where everyone runs around in black robes brandishing murderous weapons.'

'Ah. Nope. Why?'

'We're going to get Taichou back.' it was only when Matsumoto placed the brush neatly on the table did Ichigo realise she had been doing paperwork, his jaw dropping.

'Ah, uh, well, what I mean is that, I, uh, great plan!' the orange-haired teen struggled to regain his senses before finally blurting from his prone position on the sofa, 'you were doing paperwork.'

'Yes, I was. So what?' Matsumoto argued, arranging the front of her shihakushou, yet another one of those rare occasions. Flipping a stray lock of strawberry-blond hair over her shoulder, the Fukutaichou of the Tenth Division quickly changed the topic. 'We need a plan, Ichigo,' she declared wildly. 'Sake?'

Ichigo shook his head violently.

'More for me, then,' Matsumoto concluded. 'Polish up your Geography, and find out where on earth that place was. I'm pretty sure the Twelfth Division would have recorded it somehow, you can refer to it. While you do that,' she raised a cup to her lips. 'Sake?'

Ichigo shook his head once more.

'Your loss,' the well-endowed woman shrugged. 'While you do that, I'll go round up a team that we can send to the area to scout, or we will invade Hueco Mundo and kidnap Taichou back,' she ended brightly.

'Uh, wait, shouldn't you try to, uh, you know, run this through some form of authority?'

Matsumoto was struck with horror. 'Of course not!' she cried with a look of disdain spreading across her face. 'The Soutaichou wouldn't let us. He…well, to put things simply, he's convinced that Taichou has gone of his own will. Yamamoto-soutaichou would never let us rescue a, you know, _traitor_,' she spat out scornfully. 'So, while I run around doing illegal deeds and flouting authority, your job is to go work on some Geography tuition.'

'But, uh, Rangiku-san,' Ichigo began to protest.

'No buts, Ichigo-kun, chop chop!'

'Don't you think hunting that place down would be a little, uh, useless? Wouldn't they have, well…left? Especially after giving away their position like that, with the video and all?'

Matsumoto froze, a cup raised in front of her lips. 'Good point,' she conceded. 'Alright then, you can join me in my illegal extravaganzas. Meanwhile, why don't we go get Momo-chan drunk?'

'But what? Drunk? Is she old enough?' the orange-haired teen spluttered.

Matsumoto frowned. 'Of course! She's at least a hundred and fifty…'

Ichigo buried his face into his hands in exasperation. These shinigami could really be terribly annoying when they wanted to.

'Come forth, my minion!' the Fukutaichou of the Tenth Division shirked her duties with pride. 'To the Fourth Division! Get the sake, let's go go go go go!'

'Huh? Wait, what? The Fourth? Shouldn't she be resting, then?' Ichigo protested as his sandals squealed against the polished floor, suddenly finding himself being propelled out the door.

'Icchi-chi!' cried a small pink whirlwind as it barrelled into his stomach. 'And Sake-san! Where're ya rushin' off to! Can I come? Please? Will we have a tea party?'

Both Fukutaichou squealed simultaneously. Ichigo winced.

'Well, 'Chiru-chan, we're going to have a sake party! How's that? We're going to the Fourth Division to find Hinamori-kun for the party!'

'Yay!' Kusajishi-fukutaichou perched herself atop Ichigo's head, viciously grabbing his hair. 'A tea party with Momomomomo! Did Braidy-lady say yes?'

'Not quite…but then I think it's Isane-san on duty today, so we're good!'

'Yay! I brought fishcakes! Go force, my mirror!' Yachiru pointed in the direction of the Thirteenth Division.

'It's "go forth, my minions", I thought I taught you last time?' Matsumoto rebuked playfully.

'Oh yeah. What she said! Go, Icchi-chi!'

* * *

_squishie here. so I'm a little more than upset that people haven't been reviewing. no really. this isn't self-pity or anything, but I think it's a little too bad to have as many people as there are reading this but only a few reviews each chapter, so please help out? I'll make it such that account-less people can review too, as well as people who want to be mysterious and unknown okay? let's set a target here: I'd like 5 reviews before I update the next chapter, which I assure you is hilarious. I know I'm sounding piggish and all but...please? I'm so sorry! _


	7. Part VII

Okay, I'm sick of waiting for 3 more people to review, because it obviously is not going to happen, and I feel terrible for making the two people who actually took the time to review, **Aisufurawa **and **hitsugayataichouda**, wait. All my love to the two of you, okay? thanks so much! Also, as seeing how well the previous tactic turned out, my update system has changed: you take your time to review, and I'll take my time to write. School has started, I'm in my final secondary school year where the homework piles on mercilessly, not to mention last year I swore to not write during school term, but here I am. On a lighter note, enjoy the chapter!

(oh, and also, when it comes to solving the mystery of this story, **Aisufurawa** has pointed out something incredibly important...)

**Disclaimer: **no, Bleach is not mine, and it probably isn't yours either.

* * *

PART VII

'Fishcakes!' screeched Yachiru as she hurled herself into the Fourth Division, pelting the office with said processed product. 'Okay, Icchi-chi! Lead the way! While they're busy fighting the fishcakes!'

Ichigo gaped at the chaos within the office. How on earth could a packet of lumps of fish paste do…this?

'Help! Don't let them touch me!' an oddly tall female leapt onto a desk, scattering papers everywhere.

'Kotetsu-fukutaichou! Calm down, they're only fishcakes!'

'Shh! Don't _say_ that word here!'

'Why?'

'AAAGH! Fishcakes! Get them away from me! Shoo! Shoo!'

'Kotetsu-fukutaichou, if you could please come down from that desk? I mean, after all, they _are_ only-'

'_Only_ fishcakes? They're _fishcakes_! AAAGH! There's another one!' the officer on the table, whom Ichigo presumed to be this mysterious "Kotetsu-fukutaichou" was in hysterics. Clasping a hand to her chest, she breathed deeply. 'I must stop saying that word…' she muttered to herself, although she adamantly stayed on the desk while Yamada Hanatarou cowered at her ankles.

Yachiru first realised that the uproar she had intended to cause was dying rather quickly. Picking a fishcake off the floor at her feet, she sent it flying with amazing accuracy right under Isane's nose, screaming, 'FISHCAKES!' at the top of her lungs. 'Hurry, Icchi-chi! It's okay, the fishcakes won't hurt them!' she whispered into his ear from her perch on his shoulders. 'Faster! Sake-san must run too!'

They turned tail and fled as if they'd perpetrated yet another heinous crime before colliding with none other but the one and only Unohana-taichou and her infamous braid.

Smiling threateningly at Ichigo's extended height, 'and what do we owe to this pleasure, Kusajishi-fukutaichou, Kurosaki-san, Matsumoto-fukutaichou?' she inquired gently, gesturing towards the office and the fishcakes flying out the door one by one, bouncing off the corridor walls.

Matsumoto hastily shoved a bottle into her sleeve and stuffed a small brown packet down the collar of her uniform.

'Why, Braidy-lady! How nice to meet you! Aren't my manners nice? Momomomomo taught them to me!' Yachiru changed the subject brightly.

'Yes, they happen to be at this moment in time, Kusajishi-fukutaichou, but kindly answer my question as to what you are doing causing chaos in my division,' Unohana continued smoothly as a fishcake bounced off the corridor wall and hurtled back into the room where a shrill scream deafened all.

'Well,' Yachiru began, a finger placed thoughtfully on her chin that was crinkled with a little pout. 'Because we thought Braidy-lady was having a date and raisin with her boy-toy!' she finished happily, offering a fishcake she had caught mid-flight to Unohana.

The Taichou breathed deeply with her eyes closed and one hand on her chest.

It must have been some medically-proven tactic. Or a female thing, Ichigo concluded, popping the fishcake that Unohana had rejected into his mouth.

Sending a disgusted look his way, Unohana continued once again, unruffled. 'I meant, Kusajishi-fukutaichou, what did you intend to do in my division?'

'Hmm, didn't Braidy-lady say that just now? To cause chaos!'

'And after the chaos?' she continued patiently.

Unohana must have been pretty experienced in this field, Ichigo gathered. He would have stopped the interrogation once Yachiru had confessed to the chaos…

'We were going to have a tea-party with Momomomomo. Would you like to not join us?' the small girl suggested.

'Try not to burn the building down…again,' Unohana-taichou sighed. 'Any questions?'

'Me!' cried Yachiru. 'What's lingerie?'

The head doctor of Seireitei wisely ignored her. 'Have fun with your…_tea_ party, Kusajishi-fukutaichou, while I go get some cures for hangovers. You _will _take them later, won't you?' she smiled pointedly at Matsumoto.

* * *

'Tell me a story,' Hinamori mumbled, a small sake cup slipping out of her grasp. Yachiru draped herself across Momo's midsection chewing on a sugared biscuit. 'Yeah, Icchi-chi, tell us a story!'

'Uh, okay? Um, once upon a time, there lived a, um, a…princess! Her name was Princess…uh, Princess Longhair! Rangiku-san, help me out a little? Ah, never mind! One day, Prince Not-as-charming-as-me met her while he was playing polo on a great green field.'

'What's polo?' Matsumoto asked.

'It's kind of like golf on a horse…'

'And golf is?'

'You whack a tiny little ball with a skinny stick.'

'Oh. Alright. Continue,' she sat back, thoroughly enjoying the teen's adlib fairytale.

'And, when Prince Not-as-charming-as-me swung his skinny stick, it…uh…cut off a lot of her hair!'

'Why? Was it sharp?'

'Yes, very. So after that, Princess Longhair was terribly upset and punched Prince Not-as-charming-as-me squarely in the nose.'

'Ooh, action!' Yachiru squealed.

'And after that, they both took a good look in the mirror and found out that, very unfortunately, they would both have to change their names to Princess Shorthair and Prince Not-charming-at-all, and they lived unhappily ever after. The end.'

'Did they marry?' Yachiru asked, reaching for another biscuit.

'Oh, no,' Ichigo smiled. 'Mary already has a faithful partner in the form of a pasture animal. It follows her loyally everywhere. Apparently it has a fleece as white as snow. I can't imagine why though…'

'Hmm,' the young pink-haired girl pondered. 'Sounds like Chibi-kun. Does that mean Chibi-kun and Momomomomo are married?'

'Who, me?' mumbled a not-quite-lucid voice from under Yachiru while Matsumoto sprayed Ichigo with a mouthful of sake and sugared biscuit crumbs.

'Hey, 'Chiru-chan, how about _I_ tell you a story?' Matsumoto suggested, sending Ichigo a glare.

'Okay! Tell, tell!'

'Alright. Long, long ago,' the Fukutaichou of the Tenth Division began.

'Oh no, not another one of those,' groaned Ichigo.

Matsumoto frowned. 'Shush, this one's actually good,' she crammed a handful of sugared biscuits fiercely into Ichigo's mouth. 'Long, long ago, there lived a dragon. He was very big and very powerful. He could turn anything he wanted into ice just by looking at it.'

At this, Yachiru gasped. 'Stronger than Ken-chan?'

Matsumoto smiled at her innocence. 'Much stronger. He was a very important dragon to everyone. The land was peaceful because nobody dared challenge him; the weather never became too hot because the dragon was so cold. In fact, sometimes it became too cold. One day, the dragon disappeared and the weather took a turn for the worse. Many believed the dragon had died, and grieved for him. Eventually, it became so hot that plants couldn't grow well and water was scarce. When rain came, it came it torrents and would flood the entire land for many days. Everyone could only wait and hope the dragon would return to them in a reincarnated form.'

'Well, that's one bright and happy story,' commented Ichigo, who immediately earned a hit on the head from Matsumoto.

'Shut up. I'm not done,' she shot out rudely.

'I may have heard that story somewhere…' Hinamori mumbled, rubbing her aching head. 'Someone told me not to tell it to someone…uh…or was it someone said that they weren't…Rangiku-san, I think I have a headache.'

'Here, take this. It'll make you feel better,' the blond woman handed the younger shinigami a bottle of sake which she downed trustingly.

Yachiru looked Matsumoto straight in the eye. 'Didn't the dragon have a _real_ friend? The people in the story didn't really sound like his friends. Didn't the dragon have someone like…' she trailed off quietly. 'Like how Ken-chan became my daddy?'

'Well,' Matsumoto chose her words carefully. 'I suppose he did have one very close friend that-'

The door burst open, revealing Isane, chaos, and a fishcake.

'It's a fishcake!' she screamed, brandishing the small wobbling lump in Matsumoto's face before dropping it daintily into the dustbin with a look of utter disgust plastered across her face. 'How gross.'

She paused contemplatively, considering the fishcake seriously. 'Everyone out. I am going to purge the Fourth Division of vermin such as this,' she toed the dustbin, 'by today. Everyone out! Shoo, shoo!'

'But, but I'm the patient!'

'Out! Come back tonight!' Isane whipped out a pair of chopsticks and glared fiercely at the slowly-disbanding tea party.

* * *

A tall, thin figure reached out a skeletal hand, pulling down a hood to shield its eyes as it stepped from the shadow of the large white building into a narrow, immaculately tiled alley surrounded by many other similar buildings. It smirked, lifting a corner of the hood with a single bony finger, taking in its surroundings with a piercing, blue-green eye.

Silently, a rip appeared, tearing itself seamlessly from its surroundings. Stepping into the void that it provided, the figure cast one last look across its shoulder.

'_Arigatou, Shinigami-san.'_


	8. Part VIII

Part VIII

**Disclamer: **no, I do not own Bleach. in fact, I'm wearing a black shirt. why would I want bleach?

Dictionary!  
Hadou no 90: Kurohitsugi is essentially Way of Destruction 90: Black Coffin for anyone who watches the dub.  
Reiatsu: Spiritual Pressure  
Reishi: Spirit Particles  
Reijyu: a concept from one of the DS games, not quite sure which though. I've never used it either, so its definition here is just something I made up. read on.  
Soukatsui: another one of those Kidou. Way of Destruction 33: Pale Fire Crash.

* * *

'I'm not going back,' Hinamori declared stubbornly from her position at her desk. 'Kotetsu-san chased me out, and out I intend to stay.' She ran her thumb along a fold on a piece of paper, smoothing it with her palm.

'But, Hinamori-fukutaichou,' the shinigami protested, 'the Fourth Division might be able to do something about that headache of yours…' he nervously glanced out at the warm morning sun.

The girl set her jaw. 'And they'll make me stay in there too.' Hinamori jerked the corners of the piece of paper upwards, flattening the new shape with her hand.

'Hinamori-fukutaichou,' the shinigami persisted still. 'If you truly feel unwell then, that is, I mean the Division will cover for your short absence…'

She shook her head. 'That's not it, really,' she responded rather distractedly. She tugged once again at the corners of the piece of paper, revealing a small white crane in the palm of her left hand. Concentrating a sphere of reiatsu into her right palm, Hinamori held the crane up to it, watching silently as the pressure within the sphere crushed it, quickly tearing off its wings, its tail, its head, demolishing the lopsided crane into shreds. Without dropping a single slip of paper, she placed the shreds onto a tall stack of books.

'I want to get Shirou-chan back,' she whispered, pulling a fresh sheet of paper from her desk. Carefully, she folded it in half against the tabletop, pressing gently but firmly, creasing it sharply.

'I'm going to get Shirou-chan back,' she mirrored her previous movements tenderly, moving her finger carefully around the pocket she had created, inflating and flattening it into a different shape.

'I'm going to get Shirou-chan back, and look after him like all little brothers need someone to.' Gently, Hinamori lifted the corners into position and pressed them carefully against the tabletop with her thumb. She manoeuvred it deftly into the right position before slowly encouraging the top corners down, unfurling a larger, much more graceful white crane which she cupped in both hands.

'And then, he'll be ready to face the world, to shoulder its burdens, to take on all the pressure it brings,' she reached up towards the books and gently positioned the crane atop the small pile of shreds, high above the desk where it had started out.

* * *

They said that Hyourinmaru and the Heavenly Guardian came as a pair.

Matsumoto sighed, splattering flowers, grass and butterflies over a piece of paper which, hopefully, did not have a form on the other side.

Without the restraining powers of the Heavenly Guardian, the dragon's power would overflow, overwhelming Soul Society with and endless winter of dull skies and early sunsets until the spirit of the Guardian returned to their realm in its next cycle of life.

She gazed out the window at the green garden and clear sky, tainted only slightly with the hues of evening, slim tentacles of pink and orange that curled around clouds and slowly engulfed the sky.

Rather obviously, she thought, Aizen had yet to dispose of her Taichou's life.

Matsumoto had progressed to winding curly lines all over a fresh sheet of paper, stopping once in a while to add, with flourish, a dot here and there. After that, she began to draw little rabbits and ducks in whatever space was left. When the door slid open without much warning, she shrieked and stashed it behind her back, smiling guiltily at Hinamori.

'Ah, Momo-chan!' she exclaimed. 'Do come in, you look a little…well…disoriented,' Matsumoto glanced up and down the girl's thin frame that was haggardly dressed in her usual uniform and the wisps of hair sliding out of her bun.

'You too, Rangiku-san. Ah, Ichigo-san!' Hinamori exclaimed as the orange-haired teenager emerged from a cupboard holding an onigiri in one hand and clutching another ten or so under the other arm. 'Have you been staying here?' she inquired politely.

'Here?' Ichigo spluttered through a mouthful of rice and furikake as he gesticulated wildly at the cupboard.

'Never mind,' she sighed. 'I was in the library this afternoon,' the girl began.

'Library?' echoed Ichigo.

'Yes,' Matsumoto interjected. 'It's a place with more books than you can count and everyone keeps quiet. I believe there are some in the Transient World as well…'

Ichigo pulled a face.

'Continue, Momo-chan,' Matsumoto promptly ignored Ichigo. 'What about the library?'

'I…you can't tell anyone, okay?' her eyes were bright and wide, her hands clasped tightly in her lap. Her gaze dropped to her knees.

The tall, blond woman nodded. 'Do you…want me to take an oath or something?' she joked. To her surprise, Hinamori's eyes widened even further as she shrank back in her seat, shaking her head violently. 'Hey, are you alright? I'm sorry, I was…I mean…are you…uh…tea? Green tea.'

Noticing Hinamori calming down with a few deep breaths, Matsumoto curled the girl's fingers around a porcelain cup of tea. 'There you go. And about the library?'

'Let's go to Hueco Mundo. We'll get Shirou-chan back.'

Matsumoto's mouth hung agape. 'What? How? Wait – _what_ were you doing in the library?' questions flung themselves from her mind faster than her mouth could convey them.

'I – we – can create a dimension. With the power of two people, we can create our own dimension; we can create pathways between it and any other existing dimensions. With time,' at this, she looked away, 'we can get Shirou-chan back…please…bring him back.'

Ichigo hurriedly shoved his slackened jaw into place. 'Whoa, wait a moment. If that's the case, why aren't there dimensions and stuff popping up everywhere?'

Hinamori responded quietly, as if she feared someone might be listening. 'It's a long and complicated procedure…'

'So is bankai,' Ichigo pointed out astutely, cramming another half of an onigiri into his mouth.

Flushed a bright red, Hinamori brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them. 'It's…a forbidden practice…I…it was banned shortly after it was created…but please…I'm begging you…' she averted her gaze once more from the two orange-haired shinigami.

'Momo,' Matsumoto grabbed the younger girl by the shoulders, forcing her to look up. 'Who let you into the restricted section? You know that only Taichous are allowed to –'

Ichigo watched mutely as tears began to pour down Hinamori's cheeks as she wriggled out of Matsumoto's grasp. 'No! I can't! They…they'll get into trouble because of me…because of my selfishness…just like how…Shirou-chan was…I…this is all my fault!' she sobbed. 'If only I – maybe…' the rest of her words faded off into a string of choked hiccups.

'Look,' Matsumoto interrupted. 'None of this is your fault, so stop blaming yourself for things far beyond your control, okay? Now, tell me how we make that dimension of yours.'

'R-really?' Hinamori scrubbed at her cheeks and swollen eyes with her baggy sleeves. 'You're willing to put aside everything…to help me?' shakily, she pulled a single crumpled, yellowed piece of paper from the folds of her shihakushou.

Pulling the younger girl into a gentle hug, Matsumoto smiled as she patted her on her back. 'Not just to help you, Momo. You're not the only one who wants Taichou back here, you know. So, let's take a look at some of these grand plans.'

* * *

'Tell me what we're doing here again?' Ichigo looked around uneasily at the room filled with items he would never own. A large bookshelf lined one wall, filled with books and files. A cupboard not unlike his occupied the opposite wall while a small, low wooden table sat in a corner with a flat, yellow cushion lying under it. Writing materials were placed neatly in a pot on the table.

'Well,' Matsumoto began, 'no one's allowed inside a Taichou's quarters, and since we need the privacy…' she trailed off, waving the fragile sheet of paper.

'And Shirou-chan's not around to, well…' Hinamori looked down. 'He won't mind.'

'Are you sure? He kind of seems like the kind of person who would mind,' Ichigo picked his way through the book shelf, prodding books at random.

'I've been here before. He didn't mind,' Hinamori began to shift the table away from the wall.

Here, Matsumoto looked up in surprise. 'Really? Why haven't I seen you here before? When? Taichou doesn't even let me unlock the door…to think you even know where he stashes the key,' she moaned.

'To, uh, borrow socks? Some time ago…and don't tell Shirou-chan about the keys. I don't think he knows that I know about them.'

'Anyway, all this aside, our Holy Grail says that a dimension begins with an explosion?' Ichigo straightened the paper with his palm

'Yes,' Hinamori replied almost instantly. 'The explosion has to be concentrated and dense in order to upset the balance of nature, forcing it to open yet another dimension in order to cope with the change. This dimension will take on opposite qualities of the explosion; an explosion of light will open up a dimension of darkness to balance the excess of energy, such that the light from the explosion will fill the new dimension as it opens. Similarly, an explosion of heat will create a cold dimension for the heat to fill.'

Matsumoto's mouth formed a little "o" as Hinamori explained the concept. 'So where in Soul Society or the Transient World are we to rock the foundations of nature?' she asked jokingly.

'That's different,' answered Hinamori. 'In order to ensure that no two dimensions are linked directly to each other, the explosion has to be contained within a vacuum. If we begin from an existing dimension such as Soul Society, Hueco Mundo or the Transient World, there is no guarantee that the creation of a dimension will not affect the existing one. A dimension of darkness may fill with more light than provided by the explosion, leaving the old dimension in imbalance. Alternatively, the dimension may not absorb all the energy from the explosion, resulting in damage to the surroundings. Also, the force used to create the dimension will pull anyone within a radius of five hundred metres into the new dimension; the chances of accidents are high.'

'That's all fine and dandy,' Ichigo pulled a face, 'but where is our vacuum coming from?'

At this, a smile tugged the corners of Hinamori's mouth upwards. 'Hadou no 90: Kurohitsugi. It forms a momentary vacuum within it the moment it closes up, disappearing seconds later when the spell shatters. What we need to do, is to either ignite our explosion within those precious few seconds, or freeze the spell at the right moment. Both require impeccable timing. Do you know what a Reijyu is?'

'Isn't it that rock made of really densely-packed Reishi that people use to replenish their Reiatsu?' Matsumoto asked, slightly confused at the sudden change of subject.

'Yes, it is most commonly used in the Fourth Division. Placed at the bedside of patients with depleted Reiatsu, its dense composition of Reishi is absorbed by the body through mere exposure, encouraging shorter recovery periods. In olden times, people would bring them to battles to increase their Reiatsu during the battles to give them a higher chance of beating their opponents. However, this procedure was stopped as the Reijyu would shatter violently due to the flaring Reiatsu during the battle, often injuring the person carrying it.'

'So you're going to use one to increase your Reiatsu and make a larger explosion?' Ichigo struggled to read HInamori's hurried scribbles along the margins of the page.

'No, not really,' the young mastermind of the plan smiled. 'When exposed to high levels of Reiatsu, the Reijyu becomes highly volatile and the slightest knock or jolt could cause it to shatter. When this happens, every particle within the Reijyu explodes, some more violently than others, causing it to snap into tiny pieces. If we channel Reiatsu into it rather than exposing it to our Reiatsu, we can orchestrate our explosion. At the moment before it shatters, we will hit it with a sharp blast of Soukatsui, igniting an explosion within each and every particle. An exploding Reijyu will be violent enough for us to open a dimension.'

'So you're saying that we annoy this rock thing, blast it and then trap it in a vacuum and hope it explodes at the right moment?' Ichigo crudely summed up her entire speech.

'Yes, only it is less uncertain as you have put it. With one person timing the explosion and another person timing the Hadou, we can coordinate it.'

'And when are we going to get this Reijyu?' Matsumoto idly fingered the grain in the tatami mat beneath her.

'Tomorrow.'

* * *

_author's note: hurhur. I got this up and going for you guys in less than a week (I think). and I love the crane bit! oooh so proud of myself I don't even take lit. (whoops self-glorifying) _

_thanks go out once again to Aisufurawa and hitsugayataichouda for reviewing. I owe you guys...lots. is there anything you want? (please limit it to like a fic or art, because I'm not...really...rich.)_


	9. Part IX

Disclaimer: no, I don't own.  
and on a sidenote, I'm sorry this took so long!

* * *

Part IX

Matsumoto stepped out of the Tenth Division early the next morning only to meet with a large stampede rushing past from the Eleventh Division.

'Where's everyone going?' She asked at no one in particular.

'Aaah! Matsumoto-fukutaichou!' cried Ikkaku, screeching to a halt. 'Hollow attack!' he yelled gleefully, waving Houzukimaru wildly over his head.

'Where?'

'Rukongai! First District in the west! Monster slaying! Then shopping! Right guys? Well, shopping for food, at any rate.' At that point, his eyes lit up at something behind Matsumoto. 'Ichigo! Come join us for some monster slaying! Let's go guys! Where's west?'

With that, the orange-haired teenager was swamped by the Eleventh Division and carried off to the west.

'First District in the west…' Matsumoto pondered to herself as she made her way back into the office where Hinamori had occupied the couch for the night. 'Why does that sound so familiar?'

Hinamori was sitting up, kneading the grit out of her eyes. 'What was all that noise?' she yawned.

'The Eleventh Division is headed west,' Matsumoto sighed. 'They've been assigned a Hollow attack in the First District.'

The brown-haired girl fell off the couch. 'What?' yelled Hinamori. 'West District One? Junrin'an?' Wide, brown eyes bore straight into Matsumoto's clear blue eyes, tears threatening to overflow down her cheeks. 'They can't! I won't let them take anything away from me anymore! I'm going to get Granny back…' tears rolled slowly down her face, dripping onto the blanket that lay on her lap. '…before anything happens to her…'

Hastily, she pulled her Shihakushou on over her yukata and rushed out of the door, still pulling on her Fukutaichou badge.

However, less than a minute after Hinamori had left did a member of the Liteitai appear in the office. 'Matsumoto-fukutaichou,' the man greeted, awaiting her acknowledgment.

When she nodded in his direction, he continued. 'Hollows have made an appearance in North District Twenty-seven. Yamamoto-soutaichou wants a team of Shinigami from the Tenth Division to deal with them. Please leave immediately.'

Sighing and waving him off, Matsumoto threw the door to the barracks open. 'Section Five out!' she yelled, 'Hollow attack. North Twenty-seven now!'

Almost immediately, fifteen Shinigami were lined up in front of her, swords at their waists. 'Let's go,' she ordered, stepping into a Shunpo.

_I wonder if this will become the norm. Is it possible for the unpredictable to become normal?_

* * *

The village was in ruins. Hinamori stepped nervously around the carnage that was her hometown, searching desperately for that familiar face that was her Granny.

Store owners were scattered around, salvaging what was left of their goods while villagers shepherded children into houses that were still standing.

'Hinamori-fukutaichou!' an officer called out to her, snapping her out of her daze. 'Are you alright?'

'Where are the Hollows?' she whispered, refusing to look at the Shinigami, instead letting her bangs shield her eyes as she gazed downwards.

'They were easily disposed of; all nine were destroyed,' he informed her. Nodding, she turned, allowing him to leave.

Glancing over her shoulder at the smouldering mess where she had grown up, Hinamori bit her lip and stepped towards its crushed entrance. 'Granny?' she called out fearfully. 'Granny? Are you there?' Hinamori lifted her foot where she had heard something snap.

On the ground lay a small, split green package with a spray of familiar crumbs surrounding it; written carefully on the packaging were the words "ama-natto". It was the same green cloth, the same brown string, the same handwriting as the packet of ama-natto she saw every other day, exactly the same as the packet t hat Toushirou would buy from the market at least once a week.

Crouching amidst the remains of the family she had loved and failed to protect, Hinamori began to sob uncontrollably, clutching the small green cloth to her chest. _First Shirou-chan, now Granny, why am I so selfish? If only I never joined the Academy…maybe…everything would be different. Maybe we would still be together._

'Hinamori-fukutaichou?' Ikkaku was standing behind her.

'Go away.'

'Uh, well, there was this–'

'Leave me _alone_.'

'No, I was saying, there's this old woman out there, chasing anyone in a Shihakushou, claiming she knows you…?'

Wide, teary eyes turned to stare up at the bald man. 'Where…? Where is she? Take me to her!'

* * *

Matsumoto unsheathed her sword, glaring unblinkingly at the cumbersome monster that towered over her and her team. _It looks weak. Why were a team of us sent? Why did the signal picked up indicate a high-Reiatsu being?_

Pointing Haineko at the Hollow, she directed the Shinigami standing behind her. 'Search for other possible sources of the Reiatsu influx.' Matsumoto focused on the Hollow as her team split up and left the deserted, destroyed market square.

'Let's see what you've got,' the Fukutaichou smiled, raising her Reiatsu. Much to her surprise, the Hollow began to struggle under the slightly heavier atmosphere and, within seconds, disappeared with a haunting scream, dissipating into a cloud of particles, taken by the wind.

Turning around, Matsumoto stepped out of the damaged area, watching from the corner of her eye as the villagers cautiously made their way out of their flimsy wooden houses, sending suspicious looks her way and shaking their heads.

As she wandered around the riverside waiting for the group to report back, questions flooded her mind.

_Where did the dangerous Reiatsu that the Twelfth Division picked up come from? _

_How did such a weak hollow break into Soul Society?_

_Was this, in any way, related to the recent chain of events?_

_What would happen next?_

Lost in thought, Matsumoto tripped and stumbled, barely regaining her balance. Suppressing a scream upon realising what she had tripped over, she pressed her hand tightly over her mouth.

At her feet lay the pale, thin body of a young child with horribly pale hair and large, unblinking, cloudy blue eyes.

A lifeless corpse.

She stood, taking deep breaths as she took in the crumpled figure on the ground. Pale, alabaster skin was dirtied with mud; long, knotted pale yellow hair fanned out around her head in the shallow water which slowly washed away caked dirt from under her small fingernails.

Matsumoto sighed. This poor girl, she decided, had been very pretty before she had met with this unfortunate end.

_Wait. _Haineko called out in warning just as the blond woman bent to pick the child up. _How many dead bodies have you seen before?_

Dead bodies? Matsumoto mused, thinking long and hard back to the many battles she had fought. Not many…

_Not many? _Haineko chuckled, seemingly darkly. _Think harder, girl._

Eyebrows furrowed, Matsumoto squinted at the slim frame of the girl that lay before her.

None. She had never seen a corpse before. Corpses were a thing unique to the Transient World. Souls would merely disintegrate into Reishi, to be carried off in the wind.

Matsumoto mentally reprimanded herself for immersing herself so deeply in the happenings of the Transient World.

_Exactly. What is a corpse doing here in Soul Society? _Prompted Haineko.

* * *

'Ichigo!' roared a certain man of abnormally large build from afar, bells jangling as he spoke.

'Gotta run!' the teenager in question disappeared seemingly in a puff of smoke, abruptly bringing to an end whatever conversation he had been having with Rukia.

Moments later, sandals squealed in the corridor behind her. 'Kuchiki girl!' Kenpachi's manic grin widened. 'Where's that strawberry? We have a spar to get on with!'

'Uh…that way?'

'Great!'

Watching with wide violet eyes as the large, torn haori-clad man rushed past with a giggling pink blur attached to his back, Rukia turned around, only to be accosted by yet another member of the Eleventh Division.

'Ahhh!' yelled Madarame Ikkaku. 'Rukia! Have you seen Zaraki-taichou and Ichigo? We have a Rukongai assignment!'

'They went that…way?' she was interrupted with a roar of triumph from Ikkaku.

'Hollow-slaying, men! And after that?' the bald man hollered at the crowd behind him.

'Shopping!' they chimed in unison, each waving their Zanpakutou excitedly in the air.

Rukia gaped with large violet eyes and an even larger mouth as the Eleventh Division stampeded past her in a cloud of sandals, swords and dust.

* * *

'Please, Yamamoto-soutaichou,' Hinamori's voice trembled slightly. 'I beg of you, to let Granny stay in Soul Society for the time being.'

The old man raised a single, white eyebrow. 'State your rationale.'

'Well,' the girl nervously creased the fabric of her hakama, carefully avoiding the suffocating gaze of Yamamoto. 'Her home has been destroyed, and Junrin'an is in ruins and she has nowhere left to stay, so I was thinking that if…'

'If that were the case, why are you not asking that we take in every soul residing in Rukongai?' He questioned sharply.

'Granny needs to know…about everything that's been taking place recently,' Hinamori chose her words carefully, not daring to glance up at the Soutaichou. 'I need to tell her…about Shirou-chan. She must be worried, and she hasn't seen either of us in many years and…' at this, Hinamori suppressed a choked sob. 'She…we might never see Shirou-chan again…I want to spend some time with her here in Soul Society. It's selfish I know…but please…I'll take responsibility for everything…I'll settle everything she needs without causing any trouble…so please let her stay,' she finished off rather weakly.

Yamamoto sighed. 'Hinamori Momo. Kindly look up,' he spoke sternly, forcing her to pick her gaze off her knees, instead facing him from her kneeling position on the floor. 'Permission granted,' the Soutaichou seemed to smile, a kind, warm expression in his old grey eyes.

'Th-thank you so much!' she bowed respectfully before rushing out of the room.

* * *

'Rangiku-san!' Hinamori cried happily, clutching Granny by her arm.

'Not now, okay?' Matsumoto was running, a rather large brown sack cradled in her arms. 'I have important things to settle in the Twelfth. I'll find you later at your office, okay?'

Hurriedly wiping the worried look off her face, Hinamori smiled at Granny. 'Let's go and set up a futon for you in my room,' she walked slowly, leading the way as the old woman smiled.

'Momo, please thank your Soutaichou for allowing me here. Does Toushirou know about this?'

The girl bit her lip, hesitating slightly. 'Um…we'll talk about this in my room, okay Granny?'

'He must be very busy then,' Granny smiled once more. 'It's wonderful to see the two of you doing so well here, achieving your childhood dreams. Momo, why don't you tell me about that Taichou you look up to so much again?'

Hinamori nodded numbly, torn to shreds between telling her the truth and spinning more lies.

_Lies?_ Tobiume seemed amused. _Look at what happened to Soul Society. Didn't all of this happen because they chose to lie about the Heavenly Guardian? Have you ever wondered what else they have lied to you about, what else they have kept from you? _

Biting her lip, Hinamori trudged towards her room. Once the pair had arrived there, she continued to set up a futon in complete silence and proceeded to wordlessly place a cup of tea in her grandmother's hands.

'Thank you, Momo,' the old woman smiled warmly. 'Are you tired?' her silence had not gone unnoticed.

'Granny, I'm sorry,' Hinamori fidgeted, refusing to look at Granny's expression.

'Sorry?' she echoed.

'Shirou-chan is not in Soul Society anymore. I'm sorry I couldn't keep my promise. I'm sorry.'

They passed the rest of the time in silence.

* * *

_Author's note: I'm so sorry I took so long to update! School got the better of me and exams threw me down the chute, not to mention I got a little carried away writing Part X but oh well, not like you should complain. It's a little longer, after all. And the ellipsis overload in this chapter is killing me too, I'm so sorry!_

_And as for those of you who might be worrying, Hitsugaya comes back in Part XII (with luck my roman numbering isn't that bad) but Parts X and XI are important for solving the mystery! They're like clue-bombs. _

_Last of all, please review! I know I sound like a broken record but please, doesn't everyone need feedback?_


	10. Part X

_Updated prematurely because I felt so bad for making you guys wait.  
And once again, kindly pretend this entire chapter is in italics. Thanks. _

_Enjoy. (don't own)_

* * *

Part X

'Aizen-sama.' A small voice called from the doorway, forcing the bespectacled man up from his work. 'The crafting of the skin is complete. Number 29 is ready.'

'Thank you, Gin,' Aizen smiled, rising to his feet swiftly. Striding out of the room, he ordered, 'Wait in the Resource Room. You may enter the laboratory later.'

The newly-graduated shinigami tucked his knees under his chin, watching with narrowed, turquoise eyes as the moon crossed the cloudless autumn sky, listening to the steady, ceaseless humming noise from beyond the door.

He knew that what he and Aizen-sama were working on was important. It would revolutionise everything.

He knew it had to be a secret.

But when they were done, all of Soul Society would recognise their efforts. All of Soul Society would regret not joining their side. All of Soul Society would berate themselves for not noticing the experiments they had been conducting.

Maybe, he toyed with the fabric of his hakama, he wanted them to discover it, to stop the plan before they succeeded, before it got out of hand.

A chime echoed hollowly through the modestly furnished room. Quickly sliding off the long wooden bench he had perched on, Ichimaru moved towards the shelf of delicate glass jars. Standing on his tiptoes, he reached for the small tap that protruded from the largest container, carefully measuring out three cups of the fluid.

Teetering unsteadily, the silver-haired boy stumbled into the dimly-lit storage room, taking care to place the three cups at the sink. With what seemed like expertise, he tipped the viscous contents of the cups down the glass apparatus lying in the sink.

Ichimaru had long ago given up watching the liquid make its way through the numerous winding tubes and instead, chose to focus his attention on the other side of the dank room, knowing full well that the apparatus would be clean in less than half an hour.

He crouched down in front of a tank, observing intently the instruments that were connected to the experiment.

The experiment stared back with a pair of large green eyes, causing the young silver-haired child to smile at it. 'You've got the same eye colour as me. Kind of. Aizen-sama said there was something wrong with the pigmentation of all the experiments. That's why your hair is so light. And your skin too…' He continued to ramble, stopping abruptly only when the undernourished, limp body seemed to take on a clammy pallor as a machine on the wall beeped incessantly.

* * *

'Aizen-sama!' the boy leapt from his seat just as the door opened. 'Experiment Number 28 has failed. What do I do with it?'

The man smiled coldly. 'Throw it in that river east of North Rukongai District Twenty-seven. I want to see what Soul Society thinks about this. Clean its crate once you're done.'

'Yes sir.' The boy proceeded to haul a large sack from the storage area and, grunting, dragged it noisily behind him as he left the building.

Aizen watched sharply, smiling to himself. 'Stupid little boy. Don't tell me you haven't found out? Haven't you realised? You were created to surpass us all; you are the secret to artificial power. You are the key to my own army, limitless power.' Smirking, he shut the door quietly.

'Do me a good job, _Gin_. I _will_ find out Urahara's secret.'

* * *

'Ah, Aizen-san, what do I owe to this pleasure?' the blond Taichou welcomed the man into his office. 'Oh, please don't touch that, it's a little…unstable, to say the least.'

Aizen smiled placidly, carefully withdrawing his hand, waiting patiently for the superior to take a seat.

Urahara, on the other hand, wandered distractedly around the room while Aizen grew progressively more irate. Popping out from behind a door, he asked, 'tea? Water? Biscuits? Bread? Rice?'

'How about a seat?' the brown-haired man suggested.

'Oh, if you insist,' the eccentric Taichou replied, waving a hand vaguely around the room. 'Pick a spot, I'll find you soon.'

'Urahara-taichou,' Aizen interrupted. 'There is no need for the, uh,' he stumbled, taking the time to wipe his sweaty palms on his hakama.

'Ah, no need for the formalities, Aizen-san,' Urahara chirped happily, placing a cup of bright purple liquid in front of his guest.

Aizen pushed his glasses up. 'Well then, I need to talk to you about Ichimaru Gin.'

'Who?' Urahara seemed genuinely perplexed.

Aizen sighed. 'The new boy in my Division. The one with the pale skin, silver hair and green eyes and happens to be a genius. I'm talking about _your_ creation, Urahara Kisuke, and I want to know how you did it.'

Urahara opened a fan with a flick of his wrist, placing it thoughtfully atop his nose. 'Oh.'

There was a long pause as Aizen gradually grew more fidgety.

'The faux bodies,' he answered simply, beginning to fan himself. 'I've given up on them. There's always something wrong.'

'Wrong?' now he was intrigued. 'Could you give me some examples?'

'Oh, silly little things. Pigmentation errors, problems with the maturity level,' he waved a hand vaguely in Aizen's direction, quickly changing the topic. 'Now, shouldn't you be getting back to your division?'

Reluctantly, Aizen dragged himself to his feet, politely handing back the large untouched cup of purple liquid to Urahara. 'I would like to take up this project of yours, Urahara-taichou.'

'I'm afraid you would have to consolidate your own research, my dear boy,' he flapped his fan in Aizen's direction, chasing him out of the room.

_My dear boy_? The Twelfth Division really needed someone else in charge, he thought, trying to pull his sandals on with an air of dignity.

* * *

That night, Aizen accompanied a candle through the hours, scribbling busily on a piece of paper as he tried to straighten his thoughts out on everything.

Faux bodies. Urahara had never meant for his experiments to be autonomous.

Yet Ichimaru Gin existed, functioning as a soul with augmented powers.

Unless the child was considered as one of the bigger failures of the experiment, Aizen concluded. What could be expected? He grew, he controlled himself, not to mention he sapped others' Reiatsu like a sponge.

Which, considering the purpose of the faux body experiment, was the opposite of everything Urahara had been looking for but exactly what Aizen wanted to get his hands on.

Actually, the lack of pigmentation in the subjects was the least of Aizen's concerns. When he created his own army and destroyed Soul Society, colour didn't quite matter.

He wanted strong soldiers, artificially created subjects whose souls did not fade after a mere few days.

He would get those soldiers, even if it cost him an arm and a leg. After all, they would be doing the fighting.

Aizen adjusted his haori, straightening its creases. 'Gin,' he acknowledged the man standing before him. Too much time had passed since the first experiment, and Aizen had yet to unravel the exceptional case of Ichimaru Gin.

'Aizen-taichou,' the silver-haired man nodded in response.

'I heard you had been promoted to Taichou of the Third Division,' he began. He wasn't going to let Gin know that he had continued the experiments behind his back. Most importantly, he was never going to let him find out about the role he played in the experiments.

'Yes sir,' he nodded once more.

'Despite this, our alliance will not end. Together, we will gather a following and overthrow Soul Society.' He scrutinised the copy of the report he received from the Tenth half a year ago.

'Yes sir.'

'You are dismissed,' Aizen sighed; he pulled himself to his feet for a trip to the Twelfth once more.

Upon arriving at his destination, he was met face-to-face with Akon and a large file. 'Yes?' he deadpanned, 'how may I help you?'

'Could you print me a copy of the Academy's current and past enrolment and their list of upcoming graduates this year?'

'Why would you need the private information of the students?'

'I _am_ in charge of Academy matters, as is the rest of my division. I fail to see how my purposes concern you. Have it sent directly to my office by tonight.'

'Yes sir.'

Being a Taichou felt good but surely, the king of a realm would receive much more than this.

* * *

The next day, Aizen found several fat yellow folders lying on his tabletop and found himself feeling immensely pleased. Pouring himself a cup of tea and selecting a wrinkled, aged folder from his drawer, he set to work.

If that neglected report about the boy in Rukongai was not a fluke, then he would be in the Academy by now.

The Academy rarely accepted underage students and Aizen was sure that this exception would be an excellent addition to his army.

As such, the laborious hunt through the documents began, ending late that night with a crisp sheet of paper with a small photo and personal information followed by a brief write-up, pulled from the folder holding all past enrolment slips.

_Exceptions: underage student Hitsugaya Toushirou  
Height: 133cm  
Weight: 28kg  
Hometown: West 1  
Reiatsu level: 125  
Notes: contacted by Zanpakutou; recommended by Tenth Division Fifth Seat Matsumoto Rangiku_

Well, that was definitely interesting. A boy genius with pale hair, pale skin and bluish-green eyes. Further rummaging through the folder and his drawer produced another yellowed document.

_Exceptions: underage student Ichimaru Gin  
Height: 142cm  
Weight: 33kg  
Hometown: North 64  
Reiatsu level: 116  
Notes: contacted by Zanpakutou; recommended by Fourth Division Taichou Unohana Retsu_

Yet another document made its way out of the folder of potential graduates.

_Candidate: Hitsugaya Toushirou  
Tentative Division posting: Thirteenth Division  
Graduating in: 7 months  
Total time to be spent in the Academy: 1 year_

Extensive scrutinising then revealed a record in Aizen's old wrinkled folder in the form of previous experiments. A picture of a malnourished child accompanied by the label of Number 29 and a list of failures was, undoubtedly, a more dishevelled version of that Hitsugaya kid.

Success.

Twenty-nine had made it through, living in Rukongai, presumably where Gin had dumped it like many others.

Why hadn't the others made it through? Was it the district? The body? The spirit? A turn of events? Research was in order, eventually weeding yet another document from the folders.

_Candidate: Hinamori Momo  
Height: 151cm  
Weight: 39kg  
Hometown: West 1  
Reiatsu level: 89  
Division posting: Fifth Division  
Total time spent in the Academy: 6 years (standard)_

Hurriedly, he summoned the girl, hoping the recruit had not yet retired for the day.

A soft knock made itself known at the heavy sliding door of Aizen's office. 'Hinamori Momo reporting as ordered, Aizen-taichou.' The tired voice was soft.

'Come in.' He waited for the inexperienced hands to noisily close the door with a clatter before beginning.

Looking the timid girl straight in her eyes, he asked, 'tell me, Hinamori-san, what do you know of Hitsugaya Toushirou? Apparently he shares your hometown…' He smiled, serving only to further intimidate her.

'Shirou-chan?' the girl with the pigtails took a step backwards before looking downwards. 'Um, he is my brother, Sir.'

Brother? How interesting.

Wide eyes gazed up at him. 'Don't tell me he's in trouble! He – did something happen? How is Granny?'

Aizen lazily took notes. Apparently a troublemaker, the child as well as Hinamori Momo had most likely been raised by an old woman. 'Oh, not really, just that he's been enrolled in the Shinou Academy oddly prematurely. He must be half the height of everyone else there…how did you meet your family?'

'Granny took me in when I first came to Soul Society, Sir. We found Shirou-chan at the local rubbish dump some years ago. He was dying, Sir! Granny said some evil people had thrown him away and,' she paused for a deep breath before continuing, 'and I'm going to become a strong Shinigami so that I can protect him.' She beamed at Aizen.

Gears spun at impossible speeds in his head. This girl's grandmother had most likely done something that had saved the failed experiment without her knowledge.

'Well, Hinamori-san, I am pleased to let you know that your brother is doing well at the Academy and is set to graduate soon. How would you like for me to appeal for him to be placed in the Fifth Division?'

_There is still much to be learnt, after all._

* * *

_to be cont'd_

AN: Since I felt so bad that I felt compelled to update this, does anyone mind feeling so bad about me doing this for you that you feel compelled to send in a review?  
(ooh, convoluted, run-on sentence. in short: review? please?)


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